


Colorful Cavalcade (drabble edition)

by Eternal_Love_Song



Series: Talon Region [2]
Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Developing Friendships, Drabble Collection, F/F, F/M, Friendship, Gen, Humor, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-17
Updated: 2021-03-25
Packaged: 2021-03-26 04:26:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 8,229
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30100272
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eternal_Love_Song/pseuds/Eternal_Love_Song
Summary: Drabble prompts for Colorful Cavalcade characters.
Relationships: Original Female Character/Original Female Character, Original Female Character/Original Male Character, Original Male Character/Original Male Character
Series: Talon Region [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2214819
Kudos: 3





	1. Ahu + Graham  "are you kidding me"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Confession

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompts can be found [Here](https://fictober-event.tumblr.com/post/628547358001594368/photo-by-priscilla-du-preez-on-unsplash)

Graham felt a little like he had been slapped in the face. He hadn't felt more wrong footed since he started his Pokemon journey, but considering who he was talking to that wasn't all that surprising. "This can't be real," he said to himself, closing his eyes and dragging a hand over his face. Sadly, when he opened his eyes, he saw the same sight. Ahu standing before him, face flushed red and holding out a heart shaped box. "Are you kidding me?"

"I'm not," she told him, her face turning even more red. She refused to look away from him though, but it was probably more embarrassing for him than it was her. She was absolutely rigid in her stance. If he was honest, it felt more like a test than a gift.

"You're... this is a joke?"

"No."

"A prank?"

"I'm dead serious," Ahu told him. 

He was sure that he had to be dreaming, or hallucinating or... something! This didn't make sense to him though. His voice was incredulous when he spoke. "You threatened to punch me in the face last week."

"But I didn't though!" She objected. "A-and I never would!"

"You made fun of me for an hour after I tripped in the woods."

"Th-that was..." Ahu actually looked away and her voice dropped to a whisper. "I was flirting... I thought we were... I was flirting."

"Are you kidding me?" he repeated.

She stepped forward and slapped the heart shaped box against his chest. "Alright, maybe I'm not as good at this as I thought, but I'm serious right now. I like you. I've always liked you and I'm super embarrassed right now and I'm gonna leave before I make a bigger fool of myself!" She basically screamed when she got to the end of her sentence and she turned so fast that he had to fumbled to catch the box of chocolates before they dropped. She was gone by the time he looked back up.

"What just happened?" he asked himself. He looked down at the box of chocolates again. He had absolutely no idea what to do with himself.


	2. Cormac + Orchid "You did this?"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Childhood memories

The beach was usually empty in the morning. His father woke up early to go out on the boats and his mother left early to go to the Pokemon center, leaving him all alone. He ignored the breakfast left on the table for him, slices of fruit and cold bacon, and decided to go play instead. 

When he got to the beach, he was shocked. It was usually empty, but today he stared out at a sea of sandcastles. No, a village- A city of sandcastles! He couldn't even count them all; there were so many. He gasped in awe as he looked around them all, careful not to bump into them or trip on the sand. He was at the heart of the city before he saw someone. A girl his age with short pink hair, determined pink eyes, and sand caked up to her elbows. She was on her knees patting down a platform of sand with her hands and a shovel both.

The realization hit him all at once and he gasped out loud, "You did this?"

The girl looked over her shoulder at him and pointed at him with her shovel. "Do you come in peace?"

"What?"

She stood up, putting her hand on her hip while still pointing at him. "This is my city and only friends are allowed, okay?"

"Um, okay?" he answered slowly.

"I'm queen Orchid. You can be my friend if you help me build the most biggest sand castle right here, okay?"

He smiled bright and wide as he moved carefully closer. "Alright, I can help you! I'm real good at making sandcastles."

She smiled so brightly he thought there were two suns. She held the shovel out to him, but pulled it back before he could take it. "Wait! We can't be friends until I know your name, okay?"

"I'm Cormac," he told her.

"Hmm... Cormac... Cooorrmaccc," she sang his name a few times. "Cormac, Cormac, Cormac. Okay, I've got it." She handed him the shovel with a smile. One of her front teeth was missing and she was smiling so wide that he could see a new one starting to grow in. "Now I'll remember you forever."

"Whoa, that long?"

"Yep. My memory is the bestest ever as long as I say your name five times."

"Are you magic?" he asked as he got on his knees next to her.

She nodded. "Yep, I'm magic. I'm the sandcastle fairy."

"Oh." He watched Orchid for a moment before following her lead. "If you're a fairy, does that mean you'll disappear."

"Yep."

"Oh... what if I don't want you to?"

She paused in her building and stared at him a moment. "Hmmm, well if you really want, I'll become a human and be friends with you forever."

"You can do that?" He gasped.

"I'm magic, I can do anything," she told him proudly.

Looking around the sandcastle city, he believed her. "Orchid, you're so cool."

She smiled. "I know."


	3. Graham + Elaria  "I trust you"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pitfall

"Well this is... not ideal," Elaria said softly as she rubbed her aching bottom. It had been a long fall into a dark hole and it was only thanks to Graham that the fall had been broken at all. She was still sore, but she knew she would have hurt a lot more if she had been alone. Looking up, she could barely see the circle of light above them.

"Are you alright?" Graham asked. There was a dark smudge on his cheek and his clothes were askew. She could scarcely imagine what she must look like in turn, her white dress certainly ruined. He reached out to her and Elaria took his hand without hesitation, letting him pull her up.

"A bit sore, but nothing more." She smiled at him, though it was probably hard to see in the dark. "Thanks to you."

Graham rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. She was sure that he was blushing, even if she couldn't see it. He always seemed very timid about his gifts and she liked to reassure him whenever she could. "Don't be too grateful to me," he said sadly. "This is probably all my fault."

"No, you couldn't have known there was a trap there!" She objected. "The blame is on Team Midas and no one else."

He sighed as he looked up toward the sky. "They have our pokemon and the others don't know where we are."

She looked to the sides of the pit they were trapped in, knocking against it. The walls were too solid to dig into with their hands and feet, so there was no climbing out. "They are going to be rather upset when they find out what we've gotten ourselves into."

"Ahu's going to kill me if I let you get hurt," Graham said. She could hear the grimace in his voice.

"And Hunter will be insufferable if he learns that we fell into a trap." 

They sighed in tandem, neither eager to face the taunting that surely waited for them.

"It's a long way up," he said. "I'm not sure if..." Elaria turned toward him and his eyes were still skyward. He shrugged. "I could try."

She blinked at him, looked back up, then back at him. "You mean to lift us both?"

He met her eyes, looked away, and met her gaze again. "If I can't do it, we'll fall again. I don't know if you want to..."

Elaria took a step forward, taking one of his hands in both of hers. "I trust you," she told him sincerely.

He smiled, placing his other hand over her own. "On the count of three, okay?"

"Okay."

They counted together. "One, Two..."


	4. Cassia + Ahu  "back up."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sword

"Uggghhh," Ahu groaned long and loud. "I'm so hungry!" 

Cassia was sitting by the fire, rocking the egg they'd rescued from Team Midas as if she didn't have a care in the world. In Ahu's opinion they'd drawn the short straw having to stay behind with the egg while the others chased after Team Midas. And to make matters worse, Cormac and Graham were both gone. He stomach growled and she let out another tortured sound.

"I'm sure they'll be back soon," Cassia said. "Cormac promised he'd bring us back something."

"And how long will that be?" Ahu whined. "I'm hungry now! I want to eat now! Not in three hours or however long it'll be."

"We have berries," Cassia offered.

"Berries aren't real food!"

"I have a candy bar?"

"Just the one?" Ahu rolled her head back and groaned at the sky. 

"I'm sorry, Ahu, but neither of us can cook, so we have no choice but to wait," Cassia shrugged.

Ahu stared at the branches of the tree above her. There was a Delibird dragging his bag along the branches and she couldn't take her eyes off of it. "We could eat that."

"What was that?"

Ahu pointed above her. "We could eat the Delibird."

"What?" Ahu looked over to see Cassia staring at her with absolute shock. "Ahu!"

"What? I'm just saying! I'm hungry. It's a bird." She shrugged.

"No! No! No!" Cassia shouted, her voice so loud that the Delibird lifted it's sack and ran off.

Ahu sighed. "Great, you scared it off."

"Good." Ahu eyed the egg in Cassia's arms and the girl pulled it close to her chest. "Don't you say it."

"We could eat the egg," she suggested anyway.

"Don't you dare!"

Ahu leaned closer. "We don't even know what it is, so it's no loss, right?"

Cassia jumped to her feet and picked up her sword just as Ahu lunged at her. She pointed the sword at Ahu's chest. "I'm warning you."

"Ooh, what are you gonna do, Cassia? You gonna stab me?" Ahu taunted. She moved forward and Cassia dodged, pushing Ahu to the ground with the hilt of her sword and quickly pressing the blade to her neck.

"Back up," Cassia said with a glare.

Ahu smirked and put her hands in the air. "Alright, alright." She moved back from Cassia's blade, but the other girl didn't lower it at all. "You know... it's kinda hot when you stand over me with a sword like that."

Cassia turned bright red and her voice was several octaves higher as she yelled, "Don't try to distract me!"


	5. Ahu + Orchid "give me a minute or an hour"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sleep

"Ahu!" The bed shook as a weight dropped onto her back and gasped awake. Well, she sort of woke up. Her eyes were still closed, her brain still foggy, and only her hand had managed to emerge from it's tangle of blankets. "Time to wake up!" Orchid said in a sing song.

Her initial response was probably more like a snort. "Hhhnnnrt?" The rocking of the bed, while starting at first, quickly became soothing. That was until Orchid pulled up the blanket and stuck her cold hands inside. "No!" 

Ahu tried to roll away from them and just ran into the wall. Orchid giggled at her. "You have to get up. Elaria said she'd go to the next town without you."

"Okay... Okay..." Her words were slurred and she hesitantly stuck her head out the blanket. Her eyes were still closed though, so she didn't know where Orchid was. "Give me... give me a minute..."

"Alright."

"...or an hour..."

"No." Orchid rolled her up in the blanket. At first, Ahu thought this was perfect. Now she was toasty and protected, perfect for sleeping! But then the cruel woman pushed her clear off the bed and hit the ground with a hard oof!

She swore as she hit the ground, but the blanket was caught in her mouth so it was probably too muffled. That was a good thing. The last time she swore at Orchid in the morning, Cormac had glared at her like he would stab her with a dinner fork and she wasn't ready to see if that was true. Not that Orchid had heard her or else she'd have gotten in a lot more trouble. Elaria had threatened to wash her mouth out with soap one too many times for it to be funny.

The cover was abruptly pulled off of her and there was the smiling face of a demon hovering above her. Bright pink like an evil plushie from one of her childhood nightmares and serving the same function. "Are you awake now?"

"No," she grumbled. Ahu rubbed her eyes with a petulant pout. "Why are you the one waking me up anyway?"

"Elaria's tending to the pokemon and Graham refuses to talk to you before noon anymore." Orchid gathered the blanket off the floor and tossed it onto the bed. "But we've got to be out of the hotel by noon and you like to fight everyone else."

"Do not."

Orchid placed her hand on her hips. "You tried to kick Cormac."

"That was a dream," she argued.

"You pulled in Cassia and she spent 10 minutes trying to get away."

"That was... also a dream..."

Orchid smiled and leaned over her. "If you don't get up to get dressed in two minutes," she held up two fingers to Ahu's face. "Then I'll have Dora give you the shower you need."

"That's a threat!" Ahu objected.

Orchid smiled and nodded, looking so guileless that Ahu actually felt herself deflating. "I hate when you wake me up."

She leaned forward to press a kiss on Ahu's forehead. "Then next time, don't attack Cormac." Then she walked away leaving Ahu on the floor. "One minute," she said sweetly.


	6. Cormac + Hunter  "I told you so"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Odd chemistry

Cormac was done. It was bad enough having to deal with Hunter normally, when all he wanted to do was gloat and insult them, but it was twice as annoying to deal with him today of all days. Hunter was absolutely insufferable today and Cormac was done with it.

"Look, if you want something--""

"I don't!" Hunter said with a glare. He crossed his arms as he learned against the tree and Cormac sighed at having been interrupted.

"I'll share my chocolate with you if you want," he said, holding out the box of chocolates that Cassia gave him. Not too close though, since he wouldn't put it past Hunter to try and knock them out of his hand. Luckily for him, Hunter just gave him the cold shoulder, turning partially away.

"I don't even know why I showed up here today," Hunter grumbled.

"Yeah, keep telling yourself that buddy," Cormac told him. When the man glared, Cormac just bit into a piece of chocolate, holding his gaze until Hunter looked away. He watched Hunter sulking for a few minutes before speaking up. "She's going to give you chocolates."

He stiffened and Cormac could swear the tips of his ears turned red despite his refusal to turn and face him. "I told you I didn't want anything! From anyone!"

"Uh-huh. And I'm telling you to stop being so sulky because she's going to give you chocolates."

"Who asked you!" Hunter yelled.

"You standing here said enough," Cormac replied. Of all the people to be nervous and insecure on Valentine's Day, he didn't expect it to be Hunter. And of all the people to have to reassure him,Cormac would never have expected it to be himself. And it sucked, because he actually knew that Hunter had nothing to worry about and that almost annoyed Cormac more.

At least the chocolate was sweet.

A few minutes later and Hunter was tapping his foot impatiently and looking antsy again. "This is stupid," he grumbled.

"Then stop being stupid," Cormac said.

Hunter uncrossed his arms and slammed his fist into the wall behind him. "Listen here!"

"Hunter?" They both turned as Elari strolled over to them with a smile. She held out a pretty parcel wrapped in blue with a white string. "I got you this, I hope you don't mind."

Hunter stood up straighter, a light dusting of red spreading over his cheeks. "O-oh? Good thing I stopped by today or you would have been out of luck."

She smiled brighter, stepping closer and letting her fingers brush over his as she passed the carefully wrapped parcel to him. "The luckiest," she told him softly. Cormac had the luck to see him swallow nervously. "I hope you enjoy them."

Hunter nodded, his eyes never leaving hers even as she took a step back and left them alone.

"I told you so."

"Shut up!" Hunter said, turning away from Cormac and pulling his present closer.

"And you're blushing."

"No one asked you!" Hunter said louder, before stomping off. On his way into the forest Ahu tried to trip him and when that didn't work she threw her box of chocolates at his face. Cormac snickered and turned away from the scene of them bickering.


	7. Elaria + Cormac "You don't see it?"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Unrequited crushes

Elaria's house was small for six people. She only had two love seats in her living room, meaning the remaining guest had to either stand or be banished to the kitchen where the extra seating was. Elaria, of course, being the gracious host that she was, had banished herself to the kitchen. She did so under the guise of making tea, but with the understanding that all the seats would be gone when she returned.

Cormac, being the kind man that he was, followed her. He said that he didn't want to fight for seating and Elaria accepted his company gratefully.

They ended up seated together at the small kitchen table while she waited for the water boil. Cormac had an ulterior motive for choosing to sit with Elaria though and this moment alone was the perfect time to bring it up. 

"Hey?" Cormac said quietly. "You've been kind of distracted lately."

"Oh? My thoughts have been distracted lately," Elaria admitted.

"What's been on your mind? Maybe I can help." He leaned his elbows on the table and put his chin in his hand.

"It's a bit silly," she said, looking at her hands as she folded them in her lap. 

"That's okay. I'm here to listen."

"Well it's... Ahu has been acting pretty strange recently and it's been bothering me." She furrowed her brow. "I'm used to her usual self. She's... boisterous and reckless, she likes to move forward full force. Lately she's been... I don't know, slowing down, I guess?"

It was like a lightbulb went off in his head and he leaned forward. "You don't see it?"

"See what?" she asked. The tea kettle started screaming, temporarily halting their conversation as she stood up to fix the tea. She arranged the tea cups, honey, and sugar on a silver tray and Cormac went to the counter to pick it up before she could. 

"Let me," he insisted. "That's why I'm here, right?"

She smiled at him, turning to grab a tin of cookies from a cabinet so that she would have something to do. "So tell me," she said softly, "What do you see that I don't?"

He didn't answer right away. He carried the tea to the end of the hallway and gestured for her to stop. He nodded at them, lowered his voice and asked, "What do you see?"

She looked around her living room, Ahu and Orchid on one couch and Cassia and Graham on the other. After a few moments she answered him. "I see everyone sitting around as normal."

Cormac nodded. "Here's what I see. Orchid usually sits next to Cassia, if she's not with me, because they're both so expressive and don't mind being in each other's space." Elaria nodded at this. "When Orchid sat down, Ahu practically jumped into the seat next to her." 

Her brow furrowed as she looked around the room again. "She's been... quieter and less..."

"Aggressive?" Cormac suggested. "Orchid isn't into fighting like me and Graham. She kinda flits from one thing to another and Ahu has been kinda... trailing her."

Elaria looked at her friend with new eyes. But then Graham spotted them and Cormac moved forward to put the tray on the table and Elaria followed him to offer cookies. It was only a moment that she realized that she forgot spoons for the tea and rushed off to fetch them. Orchid grabbed his hand before he moved too far away. "Did you tell her?" she asked softly.

Cormac shook his head softly. "She has a lot on her mind."

"Who does?" Ahu asked.

"Elaria," Orchid answered easily, letting go of his hand. 

Ahu's eyes tracked the movement closely. "What about Elaria?"

Orchid laughed. "You don't see it?"

Cormac and Orchid exchanged a glance, but she stayed silent in the face of Ahu's questions and they moved on by the time Elaria returned.


	8. Cormac + Orchid  "No, come back"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Childhood memories

It was too dark in the house. The only light coming in through the window was accompanied with a loud boom that had Cormac burrowing beneath his blankets. He didn't like storms. They were always too loud, made the sea get too big, and they kept him up at night. The darkness hid the moon but he couldn't get to sleep to hide from it because of all the noise.

His door creaked and Cormac jumped to the surface of his blankets so that he could poke his head out. The beam of a flashlight put him slightly at ease. Monsters didn't carry flashlights because they could see in the dark. Then he noticed Orchid pulling his door softly closed behind her and he sighed.

"What are you doing, Or?" He asked, grumpy about being scared by her.

"Sneaking over," she answered. "It's easy to sneak in storms."

"You'll get in trouble," he told her.

She smiled at him, but the flashlight was pointed at the floor so he couldn't see it well. "I wake up really early, so I can go home in time for breakfast. It's fine."

He pouted. "It's not nice to sneak into other people's rooms."

She stared at him. It was always weird when she got this way, quiet and still like she was studying him. In moments like this, he wondered if she really had become human for him or if she was still too full of magic and it was about to burst from inside her. Sometimes he dreamed that she'd pretended too long and popped like a balloon into sparkles and confetti. Finally she said, "Okay. I'll go home."

She opened the door and he scrambled to the edge of his bed, reaching out toward her and saying, "Wait, come back!"

Orchid smiled as she turned back to him. "Okay." She closed the door and ran across the room to the bed, taking his outstretched hand and letting him pull him up. He wrapped her up in the blanket so that she would be safe from the storm, even though he knew that Orchid was more brave than he was and could fight off monsters by herself.

She held the flashlight up between them, allowing him to see her face without having to wait for the bright flashes outside. "I brought this for you."

"Thanks," he said as he took the flashlight and held it tightly.

She brought her legs up to her chest and laid her head on her arms. "You don't have magic, so I had to bring you some," she said softly. "Next time, if I can't come over, you'll have me right beside you anyway."

Cormac stared at her in awe. "You're really cool, Or."

She giggled. "You're the best, Cor, because we're friends."

He scooted closer to her, pulling the edges of the blanket tighter around them. With Orchid here, the storm didn't seem so loud and he was able to fall asleep with his head on her shoulder.


	9. Orchid + Graham "I'm not doing that again."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fun for one

Graham was a weak man. He could juggle pokeballs with his mind and run through gym challenges, but when Orchid looked at him with her pink, pleading gaze his will folded neatly under him. He sighed, unable to look at her excitement too long without feeling a mix of dread for whatever he was about to be pulled into and happiness that she was so happy. 

Graham!" she said his name with so much excitement and warmth that he felt it pooling in his stomach immediately. Her hands clasped together in front of her, a habit he had long realized meant she wanted to touch him but was trying to hold back, and that sign of restraint on his behalf also made him feel warm inside. "I don't want to go alone, please!"

He looked ahead at the target of this plea, a nightmare of a contraption that she, and most of their group, thought was fun. To him, it looked like a hell tower to the sky, meant to prematurely age him and turn his hair grey. Somehow though, she saw this as a device for 'fun.' Some days he didn't think he would ever understand her. 

This day, he found himself smiling at her, weak but present, and saying, "Alright."

The sparkle in her eyes was worth the agreement alone. "Oh, thank you! Thank you! Thank you! I'm so happy!" She cheered, jumping up and down as she celebrated. There were people watching them. Orchid always had people watching her for one reason or another, but he still wasn't used to being in the center with her. She reached out to take one of his hands in both of her own and drag him forward.

The rest of their party had dispersed almost as soon as they'd arrived and if he'd been thinking clearly, he would have followed Cormac. Instead, he'd been caught up staring at Orchid until she asked him to come with her. She'd spent the first half of the day fine riding rides by herself, but all of a sudden she seemed to think that she needed his presence.

Graham was entirely certain that he would regret this, but he was willing to try it. Once. For her.

Graham was proven entirely right when he was strapped into the death trap that Orchid called fun. His eyes were closed so tightly they were practically glued and the only thing to redeem the experience was that he feld tightly to Orchid's hand the entire time. He felt dizzy and off kilter when he got off and leaned the nearest food stand to gather himself.

"I'm not doing that again," he said solemnly. One near death experience was more than enough for him, even if Orchid considered it sport.

"I'm glad you did it with me at all," Orchid told him. "I won't make you do it again." She stepped closer to him, waitin to catch his eyes and give him the heart pounding smile that made him think the sun was rising twice in one day. "Thank you, Graham. I really appreciate it."

He was a weak man. Her smile made him go dizzy in the head and he didn't end up being able to do anything other than smile back at her. When she held out her hand to him, an offer rather than a request (she never got made at him when he declined her, despite him so often thinking that she would), he accepted. Their fingers laced together and he was nothing but completely happy.


	10. Orchid + Elaria "all I ever wanted"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What if

Elaria felt like her legs were burning. There was a burning weight in her chest and her breaths were becoming heavier and heavier. She regretted all those times she turned down Ahu's offers to run with her because right now she felt that she could have really used the experience. The ground was uneven and her foot kept catching on things, but she never fell. 

Orchid was running beside her. The hard look of determination in those pink eyes was all that was keeping her going. Orchid was clutching Celebi close to her chest, the pokemon wide eyed and scared. 

The ground shook beneath them, causing Elari to nearly trip again, only this time Orchid reached out to stabilize her. She was afraid to look back at the giant thing that was chasing them. The hyper beam it had unleashed near the beginning of this chase was a fear that nagged at the back of her mind, but she had no idea what kind of pokemon was that big and that powerful.

"I don't think I can keep going," she admitted.

Orchid looked over at her, one hand still wrapped tightly around Elaria's arm and the other clutching at Celebi. She dropped her gaze to the Pokemon in her arms. "You're right," she said, starting to slow down. Elaria panted heavily as she tried to catch her breath, "We can't run forever."

"What do we do?" Elaria asked once her panting had slowed. She looked at Orchid, but her eyes were focused solely on Celebi. 

"How are you feeling, Celebri? Think you have enough energy for one more?" Orchid asked softly.

The pokemon fluttered its wings a few moments before flying out of her arms and nodded. "Good."

There was a roar in the distance and Elari looked over her shoulder at the far off shadow of the pokemon. "I'm really sorry, Orchid. I never meant to get us into this mess. I just wanted to spend more time with you. I didn't think that..."

Orchid pulled her into a hug, cutting off her words. "It's okay, Elaria. I understand." Elaria returned the hug, her arms trembling as she held onto Orchid as tight as she could. "Next time, you don't have to go out of your way to look for legends or cool adventures. I don't care about all that."

"But I thought--"

Orchid placed a finger to her lips, silencing her. "All I ever wanted was to spend time with you. So this time..." Celebi started glowing and Orchid made an effort to pull herself out of Elaria arms.

"What are you..."

"Just spend time with me as normal, okay? It'll be enough." Orchid smiled.

Elaria tried to reach toward her again but Celebi, glowing too brightly to look at directly, slammed into her. Her arms went around the pokemon instinctively and she felt like the world was falling away from her. She closed her eyes. 

When she opened them, she was back at camp and everything was normal again. Ahu was yelling at Graham, Cormac was talking to Cassia and Orchid...

"Hey?" Elaria jumped as a hand was placed on her shoulder, relaxing as Orchid's face popped back into view. "Are you okay? You look a little out of it."

"I... must have spaced out..." His head felt kind of fuzzy and there were... odd pictures in her head that felt more like dreams than anything. She closed her eyes, trying to focus on them, but they kept slipping away from her. "Maybe I was dreaming something."

"Oh yeah?" Orchid smiled as she sat down next to Elaria. "Was it a good dream?"

"I'm.. not sure... You were in it though."

"Then it must have been a good dream," Orchid said. "In fact, it's probably a sign. We should do something fun together today."

Elaria found herself returning the smile. "Yeah, I'd like that."


	11. Ahu + Graham "just say it"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One Panel comic


	12. Orchid Bird Keeper au

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> AU where Orchid is a Bird Keeper. Orchid/Graham

They met on a cruise. It was one of the rare times his parents had requested his presence for something and he had actually been eager to spent time with them, only for them both to bow out at the last minute. He was disappointed and annoyed, having expected to meet them on the ship and getting a call that they could be there only minutes before departure. There wasn't enough time for him to leave, so he resigned himself to four boring days trapped on a boat with strangers. He locked himself in his room all day, only coming out that night when he expected most people to be asleep.

He saw her on the deck, long pink air dancing in the wind, the wind making her dress billow around her, and her arms throw out to either side. She was balancing rather precariously over the edge of the railing as she tossed bits of food in the air for Wingull and Pelipper, and dropped a few larger pieces for a Gyarados that was racing beside the ship. For a moment his breath was caught at the sight of her, careless and beautiful and free, all the things he had never been.

He must have made some sound that he didn't remember, because she turned to him sharply, causing her to lose her grip and tip forward over the edge. He would never forget her expression, surprised but unafraid, her eyes meeting his and not looking away for a moment even as she slid toward her doom. 

He reacted quickly, reaching his hand toward her as he grabbed her with his power and held her in place. He wasn't the only one to reach for her though. Two Wingull had plucked her sleeve and a Pelipper flew beneath her, all prepared to keep her from falling.

"Oh!" Her voice was light and pleasant, filled with joy. "That's a handy trick."

He understood why she hadn't been afraid. The Pokémon around her wouldn't have let her fall even if he hadn't been there. Feeling silly and a little useless, he rubbed the back of his head, looking away as he lowered her back to solid ground. "Um, sorry."

She laughed as she took long strides toward him. "Don't be sorry! That was wonderful!" Her eyes were a bright pink, even in the dark, and large flowers adorned her head. She leaned toward him with a smile, close enough to touch, but only barely. "I'm Orchid, how do you do?"

"G-Graham," he stammered, feeling even more like a fool for fumbling his own name.

"Hmm. Graham," she repeated softly. "Graham, Graham, Graahaam, Graham," she sang his name, going progressively higher until the last one, which was sung unexpected low. "There, now I won't ever forget it."

"Why would you want to remember?" He asked without thinking, pressing a hand to his lips right after. There were so many more normal things he could have asked her, like why she sang his name at all. Of course it would be the weird question he asked instead."

"Why would I want to forget the name of someone that saved?" she asked him, hands on her hips as she grinned widely.

"The Pokémon would have caught you."

"That's not the point," she insisted. She took three careful steps forward, measured and slowly as if watching to see if he would recoil from her. He didn't, too curious to see what she would do to focus on how much closer she was coming to do it. She took his hands in hers as she spoke. "The point is that you wanted to help me. So thank you. It was really sweet." She winked at him. "And also really cool."

He wasn't sure what to say to that. He followed her when she pulled him back toward the ship's railing, accepting the Pokémon food she poured in his hand, and helped her toss pieces to the Wingull. It was an odd way to spend the time, but not an unpleasant one. 

When he returned to the deck the following night, he was pleased to find that she was always there. He watched her dance in a circle of Swablu on the second night, listened to her sing a duet with a Noctowl on the third, and on the forth night all the birds flew away when they saw him approach.

"Sorry, I scared them off," he said.

She shook her head, standing and dusting off her dress where she'd been sitting on the floor. "Not at all, I asked them to give us some privacy."

"Huh?"

She leaned against the railing, tilting so far back that he worried a wave would knock her off her feet. There weren't any birds around to catch her this time and he watched her closely so that his reflexes would be in time to catch her should need be. "If things go as they are, this will be our last night together, right?"

"Yeah, I guess so." The idea was a little disheartening, more than he expected it to be. 

"So what if... we changed things?" She asked softly. She lifted her head, watching him closely as she asked, "What if... this wasn't the last time?"

The wind picked up, a breeze ruffling her hair around her and blowing his bangs into his face. He lifted a hand to hold them out of the way, watching her almost as closely as she seemed to be watching him. "What are you..."

"You haven't looked happy to be here a single day of this cruise," she told him. "The only time I've seen you smile is at the Pokémon. And whoever put you up to this... sucks." She smiled to soften her words, but he still felt it like a blow.

He winced, looking away as he muttered, "It was supposed to be a trip with my parents."

He saw Orchid move out the corner of his eye and turned to watch her, mind boggling as she hauled herself up to sit on the thin railing. "Mine too!" she exclaimed. She took a deep breath, holding to the railing tightly as she closed her eyes. "They were supposed to be coming home a month ago. That changed to us taking this little vacation together, which became them meeting me at the port." She smiled as she rocked forward. He was sure he was more nervous about her potential fall than she was, but it didn't stop him from leaning forward in case he needed to put an arm out to catch her. "And what do you think the odds are that they'll meet me at port?"

If they were anything like his own parents, it was probably a very slim chance. She didn't seem distressed though, just accepting. "How do you do that?"

"Hmm?"

"Are you disappointed?" He asked.

She looked up to the sky. A wave made her rock unexpected back. He jerked forward, hands on either side of her while she didn't change position at all, aside from how the boat moved her. She smiled, but didn't turn her head away from the sky. He felt his face heating up. He wasn't being over protective when she was sitting on ship's rail and could fall off at any moment, but her nonchalance in comparison made him feel silly all the same.

"Come with me, Graham? Let's visit all the places our parents can't. We'll take pictures and send post cards, we can feed Pokémon together and go exploring, and the next time they ask you to be somewhere they don't show up to, it won't hurt so much." She met his eyes. "Because you'll be having fun."

She made it sound so mesmerizing that he almost forgot that it was completely ridiculous. Almost. "I don't know where you're going."

"We can go anywhere," she replied. "I'm a Bird Keeper, in a pinch, I could even fly us someplace."

"I just met you," he said, more to himself than to her. He'd never thought about just... leaving before. Not without having some excuse. 

"Yeah, it would be a shame to part so quickly, don't you think?" She leaned forward again, hands tight on the rail and keeping her firmly in place. "It can be for a week while you make your parents wonder... it can be for longer, if you start to have fun. The possibilities are endless, you know."

Graham thought about it. He'd always wanted to take the gym challenge, always wanted to do more than stay trapped back at home. And yet, something had always made him feel like he just couldn't. It was... odd to meet her a person that made him feel like he just could. Like he could just up and decide to... live his own life.

His parents had done that. Why shouldn't he?

Orchid hopped off the railing. "Well, what do you say? Will this be the last day or the first?"

"The first?" he repeated. "We've known each other for four days already."

She laughed, bright and happy. It made him feel lighter, like she wanted him to laugh with her an not like she was mocking him. "The first day of our journey," she told him. "Which one?" She held her hand out to him, looking hopeful.

He hesitated only a moment more before reaching out to shake her hand. "The first," he answered.

Orchid's smile brightened and she leaned closer. "Yes! I'm so happy!" she exclaimed. Her eyes dropped to their clasped hands and her voice got softer as she said, "The last person that I asked... he said no. So thank you."

Graham didn't know what to say to that, so he just squeezed her hand once before withdrawing. It seemed to be enough, as she leaned against the railing beside him quietly. He was looking forward to seeing what this Bird Keeper could show him.


	13. Ahu/Graham  Tremble

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Intensity.

Ahu was rarely ever still. She ran full force ahead at everything she did, she was impatient whenever the group was still, and ever in her sleep she was messy and restless. It used to be intimidating, when their association was fresh and new. Over time he'd gotten used to it.

He'd gotten used to her dancing when she walked and sometimes sang her a song to move to. He'd gotten used to watching her sprint full tilt around any town they were just so she could get her energy out and sometimes ran with her. He'd gotten used to hearing her fall out of bed in the morning because she moved in her sleep and woke up too close to the edge. It stopped being intimidating, disruptive, and slowly became endearing.

It didn't surprise him that, at a moment like this, she couldn't stay still either.

He'd caught her in a rare moment alone, catching her before she left the room and crowding her against the wall. If he would tried this in the earlier days of their association, she likely would have punched him. Not that he would have eve considered such a thing back then. 

It was absolutely adorable to be this close to her, arms on either side of her head and barely a breath apart. Her face was absolutely red with embarrassment, her body was fidgeting against the wall, but her eyes refused to look away from his own. Even like this she challenged him, dared him to do more. He'd grown to like it.

"Were you keeping me here just so that you could stare at me?" she asked once staring him down didn't get a reaction from him.

"No, I intend to kiss you," he told her.

She blushed further, looking away for the briefest of moments before meeting his eyes again. She treated every moment between them like it was a fight she wanted to win, refusing to let him gain too much ground. "Then do it!"

He chuckled. It was rare to fluster her this much without her getting anger. He liked it. He moved closer to her, stopping with a whisper's worth of room between their lips. "You're trembling," he said softly.

Her eyes widened but before she could do anything, he captured her lips. He could feel the heat from her blush. She grabbed a fistful of his shirt and pulled him closer. 

It was moments like these that he treasured. Quiet, private moments where they could just be. 

When he pulled back, she whispered, "You're a terrible tease, Graham." He liked that she allowed him to be.


	14. Orchid/Cormac

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She'd never given the idea a thought.

Orchid woke up on the beach. The sky was on fire as the sun set, sinking ever so slowly into the sea. There was the briefest chill in the air, the sand beneath her damp, but aside from the mist coming from the sea, she was dry. She could feel the sand in her hair when she moved her head and see the sea just barely keeping from lapping at her feet.

It was a quiet moment for her. She wasn't often still, at least, not on land. It was easy to be still in the water and let the waves carry her away, let herself drift without a care in the world. She rarely laid still like this though.

She closed her eyes, hearing Cormac approaching from somewhere and not checking where. Not checking until she felt the sand move beside her, heard his breathless surprise. She opened her eyes and he was right there, hovering over her.The wide look in his eyes told her that he had tripped and she expected him to right himself soon after, but he didn't.

He stayed right where he was, hovering above her, watching her. His arms were by her shoulders, his legs on either side of her, and the longest part of his hair dangled down to brush her cheek. It didn't bother her, the closeness, though she saw no reason for it. It didn't register as much different to her than when they would hold hands or lean on each other. In fact, she half expected that he'd press his forehead to hers and just... breathe. They did that sometimes, though it had been a long time since she could remember either of them needing to.

He didn't. Instead, he said softly, "Close your eyes."

She didn't question him. Her curiosity danced behind her closed eyes, but only briefly. She waited, patient with the knowledge that Cormac would tell her in his own time.

He let out a deep breath. It fanned over her face, closer that she expected and her eyes twitched, but didn't open. He was close enough to share heat with her now, to shield her from the cooling air around them. Close enough, slow enough, long enough, for her heart to beat more drastically. It was unusual for a moment like this to drag and she sudden felt the weight of it, if not the why.

"I want to kiss you." His voice was soft, right beside her ear, and it made her shudder. It felt too sudden, too unexpected. She wanted to open her eyes, but didn't, because he'd asked her not to. Her lips parted to speak, but all she managed to do was exhale, lost in the thought that he actually might. 

"I want to make you feel, Orchid." She shivered again, feeling his breath on her neck. "I want to make your heart beat as fast as mine." The heat around them made her cognizant of everywhere they weren't touching and she felt herself blush at the thought. She bit her lip, then blushed harder at the thought that he might be watching the movement of her lips. 

He moved closer. She felt him move closer, his proximity sending sparks along her skin. She let out a shuddering breath without realizing it. "Cormac..."

"Say yes and I'll kiss you." It felt like a promise, the weight of it sinking deep into her skin. "Say no and I'll leave before you have to open your eyes."

If anyone had asked her, this moment never would have occurred to her. In fact, she would have answered without giving the idea a thought. But because it was Cormac... He could give any idea life to her. The fact that was laying here beneath him, practically on fire, was proof enough of that.

Orchid had spent nearly their entire lives leading him. Maybe this time, she could follow him for once.

"Yes." It was only a whisper, barely audible over the sound of the waves. It was enough. He pressed his lips to her own gently, passionately. She didn't hesitate at all to part her lips when she felt the probing touch of his tongue and she couldn't hear anything over the sound of her own heartbeat. He held her captive until she was breathless, releasing her as slowly and reluctantly as possible.

It was dark when she opened her eyes. Night had fallen and the only reason she knew it was because he was illuminated in a different light. She felt oddly exposed laying beneath him with her heart hammering in her chest. Excited in a way she hadn't just minutes before.

"Cormac..."

This time, he did press his forehead to hers. They breathed together, calming her and exciting her all at once. She had never been so aware of him, never felt the space between them so deeply. She reached out with both hands for his face, just touching him, holding him.

"Sorry, that was sudden," he said. He was looking at her with his eyes wide open. There was nothing between them.

There were a million things that she could have said in that moment, that she could have asked. Orchid was patient though. Instead of questions, she said only, "I said yes."

He closed his eyes then, shivered. As if the reminder of her acceptance was as powerful as the kiss itself. 

Orchid wasn't as careful as him. She didn't ask, just tugged him closer. He came to her willingly, allowing her to press their lips together once more. 


End file.
